English: Amino acid mutation map for the SARS-CoV-2 Pirola (JN.1) variant, plotted on a genome map of SARS-CoV-2, with a focus on the Spike protein. The rare mutations (0.01% prevalence, at the time of discovery) are marked in red, while the antibody resistance mutations are marked in blue. This variant is also known as BA.2.86.1.1 and B.1.1.529.2.86.1.1, and it was the second major antigenic shift COVID variant to emerge during the COVID Pandemic, following the Omicron Variant 2 years earlier. Similar to the original Omicron Variant, JN.1 was a hypermutated variant that likely originated from a chronic illness patient in South Africa, descended from the Omicron BA.2 lineage.